


Creatures of Space

by PsychGirl (snycock)



Category: The Sentinel (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Fusion, Drama, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Lang Belta, M/M, Pre-Slash, The Expanse, cursing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-07
Updated: 2020-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:01:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23047432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snycock/pseuds/PsychGirl
Summary: Yeah, so when I heard the prompt was AU meeting, this idea grabbed me and wouldn't let go.  Fusion with The Expanse, but none of the Expanse characters appear in it.  Set prior to the events of the show.  I might extend it - if I can think up a good plot idea.  Lang Belta translation provided at the end.
Relationships: Jim Ellison/Blair Sandburg
Comments: 10
Kudos: 15
Collections: TSCC 13: AU Meeting





	Creatures of Space

A soft whoosh from behind heralded the door opening. Jim turned from the one-way mirror to see his commanding officer, Captain Olivia Norris. She came and stood next to him, looking into the interrogation room.

The young man inside was seated at the table, hands cuffed, dressed in a standard Belter jumpsuit, dark hair pulled taut. He looked subdued – head down, eyes on the table – but Jim could sense a subtle tension in his frame. 

“We found him hanging around the port,” Norris said. “Told some bullshit story about oversleeping his leave and missing his ship.”

“Unlikely,” Jim agreed. “You think he was recruiting for the OPA?”

“Or worse,” Norris said. She turned to face him. “Figure out what’s going on. We don’t need another Callisto.”

“Sir,” he replied, nodding. 

As she left, he took a deep breath. Opening the door, he entered the tiny interrogation room and took a seat across from the young man. Dark blue eyes rose to meet his, framed in dark lashes. 

“Kewe kolting ando go, pomang?” the kid said, grinning. 

He ignored it, focusing on mentally logging the kid’s sensory information for baseline. “My name is James Ellison, Lieutenant, Martian Marine Corps. You are being detained on board the MCRN Tsunami.”

The kid’s grin wavered a little, but he didn’t drop his gaze. 

“Your name is Blair Sandburg,” Jim continued. “You’re stationed on the hauler Belfast, out of Ceres Station.”

“True dat,” Sandburg replied cheerily. No change in his heart rate or scent. 

“So what were you doing on Ganymede?”

Sandburg sat back in his chair, or as much as he could, given that his hands were cuffed to the table. “Where’s your focus drug, pomang? I thought this was going to be an interrogation.”

Deflection. Standard technique among OPA agents to mask bodily reactions and confound interrogation techniques. 

“Your mother is Naomi Sandburg.”

The smile faded and he could see a muscle twitch around Sandburg’s eye. 

“She left Earth for the Belt when you were barely two years old, didn’t she?” 

“What of it?” Sandburg’s heart rate had increased, and Jim caught a whiff of something sharp. Not fear… anger, maybe? Concern?

“Must have been hard, to leave your home at such a young age.”

“Earth is not my home,” Sandburg growled.

“Oh, come on,” Jim said. He could see the flush starting in Sandburg’s cheeks. “No one considers you a Belter, do they? What’s the phrase? To na Belta foriya?”

Sandburg clenched his fists. “Mi Belta lik pashang, sabakawala!”

Jim shook his head. “To da paxoniseki.”

The kid jumped to his feet, but was brought up short by the cuffs. “Pashang fong, pashangwala!” he snarled, falling back into his chair. The sharp scent was almost overwhelming now.

Grinning, Jim sat back, raising his hands. “It’s the truth, bosmang. Maybe there’s a reason your beratnas were so willing to leave you when you were late.”

“I wasn’t late! I was—” Sharpness bloomed into the sour tang of fear as the kid realized his slip, too late. He slumped back in his seat, heartbeat thundering. 

Jim leaned forward. “What were you doing on Ganymede?” 

Sandburg took a deep breath. There was a prickle of sweat at his hairline. “I’m not talking to you anymore, sabakawala.”

“Fine. Go cool your heels in a cell.” Jim stood and pressed a button on the wall, and two corpsmen came to escort Sandburg away. 

His mother was clearly a trigger for him. Find Naomi Sandburg, and they’d have a chance of finding out what the kid had been doing.

**Author's Note:**

> Kewe kolting ando go = How’s it going?  
> Pomang = Duster (derogatory Belter term for Martians)  
> To na Belta foriya = You’re not a real Belter  
> Mi Belta lik pashang = I’m Belter as fuck!  
> Sabakawala = asshole  
> To da paxoniseki = You’re a stunted Inner shorty  
> Pashang fong = Fuck you!  
> Pashangwala = fucker  
> Bosmang = boss, Chief  
> Beratnas = brothers


End file.
